The Home Front is an ongoing series where we highlight the mission and ministry taking place around our territory. We will visit each Canadian province and territory, as well as Bermuda, and celebrate the innovation and impact the Army is having in corps, social services and youth ministry.

GLOW KIDS IN BOWMANVILLE, ONT

When Aux-Lieutenant Allison Rennick arrived at Bowmanville Community Church a few years ago, her mandate was clear: to revitalize the corps.

“There was a vibrant community ministry, but the corps was dwindling,” she says. “We had a nucleus of people who showed up on Sunday morning, but the activities were inward-focused—there was no connection to what was going on during the week.”

The first thing she did was transform an unused room off the sanctuary into a coffee hub, a welcoming space for guests to wait for their food bank appointment. Volunteers from the corps offer snacks and conversation, breaking down some of the barriers between the corps and community services, and providing an opportunity for spiritual conversations.

 The next step was community outreach, specifically to families, since it had been many years since the corps had a children’s ministry. An innovation grant provided funding to hire a family outreach co-ordinator, Sarah Ali, who started a mid-week children’s program.

“Glow Kids is open to any children from the community, but we really try to connect with families from community and family services (CFS),” says Aux-Lieutenant Rennick. “Our goal is to work toward integrated mission between CFS and our spiritual community—that what we do during the week would eventually feed into the corps.”

They started with three kids, but about 30 now attend each Wednesday, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The evening begins with praise and worship, a Bible story and a challenge to memorize Scripture.

“The foundation is to teach the kids about Jesus, because that is the seed that needs to be planted,” says Ali. “But we also teach sports and art—it’s a skill-building opportunity, especially for families who can’t afford extracurricular activities.”

Every few months, the kids participate in the service on Sunday morning. In December, they performed a Christmas musical called “God’s Gift to Us.” Parents are invited to attend, opening the door for them to explore church.

Another way Aux-Lieutenant Rennick is trying to break down barriers is by hosting café church once a month. Rather than a traditional service, where people sit in pews in a sanctuary, café church is a relaxed environment, with food and conversation around tables.

As attendance grows, Aux-Lieutenant Rennick is also introducing other initiatives, such as a monthly community meal, men’s breakfast and family fun nights.

SOUP VAN IN HAMILTON, ONT.

Splayed across a grassy knoll in the northern end of Hamilton, various groups of individuals stir, making their way toward the familiar sound of the Salvation Army soup van approaching in the distance.

On board, the van doles out a hot meal, often soup and sandwiches, and refreshments, to approximately 75-150 people per night at two stops in the city, five days a week.

The ministry aims to support a marginalized demographic, physically, emotionally and spiritually, and has faithfully done so since 1992, despite challenges in funding and an increase in people turning to them for help.

“The soup van ministry is primarily about connection and building relationships,” says Jon Miedema, director of spiritual care for Hamilton, Halton, Brantford (HHB) Housing and Support Services. “We want the people we serve to know they are seen, heard and loved.”

A lot of the people the ministry supports have been neglected and dismissed by many, he explains. The soup van ensures clients have nutritious food to eat and someone to talk to.

It has made a world of difference to Susan, who has lived in her friend’s garage for three years. She brings her four grandchildren to the soup van with her to get food and snacks. “The soup van helps me get by and gives me hope so that I can contribute to my daughter’s situation.”

Bob is a 33-year-old man who says he has lost everything due to his fentanyl addiction. “My crazy world now consists of me begging for drug money on street corners and sleeping in shelters when I can get a bed. The one thing I can always depend on is the soup van where I can get food and, from time to time, I ask for prayer to help me get by.”

One of the key reasons people feel comfortable accepting help is because of kind service workers such as Gregor Winton, who has served as a driver with the ministry for the past 23 years.

“I’ve been very blessed by The Salvation Army through many years of service,” he says. “The ministry can be a hard vineyard to work and plant seeds in, and we don’t always see the fruit of our labour, but we know that it’s a good thing, and that people are being blessed by God.” —by Melissa Yue Wallace

SPARK JUNIOR YOUTH COUNCILS

It only takes a spark to get a fire going—that’s why SPARK is the perfect name for the Canada and Bermuda Territory’s reimagined junior youth councils. Over the past several months, the Ontario Division has held regional SPARK events for kids in Grades 1 to 6, with a hands-on Bible lesson, music and prayer, and games and crafts. It was the first event for this age group since before the pandemic.

“The overarching theme for our SPARK day is that God created you on purpose to reflect, honour and serve him,” says Becca Allen, divisional children and youth program co-ordinator and director of Blaze Adventure Camp, Ontario Division. “We talked about how God has given each of them a spark—an acronym for spiritual gifts, passions, abilities, real-life experiences and kind of personality—and how they can use those gifts for him.”

The day began with a focus on God as the Creator, as the kids used playdough to make something representing each day of creation. After reading the story of Punchinello in If Only I Had a Green Nose by Max Lucado, another teaching segment returned to God’s final act of creation—making humans in his image. The kids decorated a handheld mirror with the key verse for the day: “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:10 NLT).

At a prayer station later in the day, the kids were invited to write down how they were uniquely made by God and then place their notes on a full-length mirror. Other stations included writing a letter to God using Scrabble tiles, praying for others as they built a Lego tower, and painting a mural to thank God for his creation.

“We want to help kids understand that praying doesn’t have to only be sitting still with their eyes closed,” says Allen. “If we can build in some healthy prayer habits now, hopefully those will continue as they get older.”

As the kids were encouraged to “find their spark” and consider how they could use them for God, one girl reflected on the experience of moving to a new school, and how it made her want to welcome others.

“If every kid walked away knowing that God created you, as you are, on purpose, and has a plan for you to use those things for him, I think that was a successful day for us,” says Allen.

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